At the high conveying speeds required of modern ammunition handling apparatus, the transfer of linkless rounds of ammunition between conveyors of associated equipment is always of major concern. Such transfers occur between the conveyor of replenishing or reloading equipment and the magazine conveyor of a rapid-fire gun system where live ammunition rounds are handed off from the reloading conveyor to the magazine conveyor typically in exchange for spent ammunition rounds or spent shell cases stored on the magazine conveyor. Such transfers also occur when live ammunition rounds are handed off from the magazine conveyor to the gun conveyor, again typically in exchange for spent ammunition rounds. At these round transfer locations, there is invariably a "dead zone" where positive control of ammunition round movement is momentarily lost. This dead zone is characterized by the hiatus or gap in at least one of the ammunition round control or guide surfaces at the transition between the ammunition round conveyor path and the round transfer path or paths therebeyond. This round control gap is necessary to afford clearance for the ammunition conveyor as it moves through the round transfer location which is ideally located at the outboard side of a folded loop in the conveyor path.
Heretofore, the design approach addressing this dead zone problem has simply been to minimize the width of the round control gap. Thus, the ammunition round carriers of the conveyor have been reduced in cross section or notched to accommodate greater penetration of diverting guide surfaces or deflectors into the round control gap (dead zone). However, this significantly reduces the stiffness and strength of the conveyor carriers, and thus jeopardizes their structural integrity against the extreme stresses encountered during high speed round conveyance.
It is accordingly an object of the present invention to provide improved apparatus for handling linkless rounds of ammunition.
An additional object is to provide improved apparatus of the above-character, wherein the transfer of ammunition rounds to and from an ammunition conveyor is effected without loss of positive control over the transferred rounds.
A further object is to provide improved apparatus of the above-character, wherein the dead zone or round control gap for transferred rounds is virtually eliminated.
Another object is to provide improved apparatus of the above character, wherein the control of rounds both transferred to and transferred from an ammunition conveyor is achieved by common control means.
A still further object is to provide improved apparatus of the above-character, which is efficient in construction, convenient to manufacture, and reliable in operation over a long service life.
Other objects of the invention will in part be obvious and in part appear hereinafter.